Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Sun Aug 09, 2015 8:58 am

I REALLY have to get one of those. I keep saying that every time you post about the ironweed.

In my garden, I think it was the Buttonbush a little while ago and now Summer Sweet and Joe Pye Weed. I imagine Virginia Sweets had their attention at some point, but I don't remember when. Oh, and squash. C.maxima are done, C.pepos are mostly done, but the C.moschata varieties are still going strong.

I need to deadhead the Joe Pye Weed since most of the flowers have faded. Mints and hardy ageratum are starting to bloom so those will be next, I think.

Learning never ends because we can share what we've learned. And in sharing our collective experiences, we gain deeper understanding of what we learned.

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Sun Aug 09, 2015 1:09 pm

Our bees are working the horsemint and dwarf ruellia in the pasture, and the zinnias in the yard. This is our "brown and crisp" season, so the bees' diet is limited.I definitely need to look into ironweed--sounds like something that could survive Texas' climate!

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Sun Aug 09, 2015 1:14 pm

Watch the roadsides. Mine started as one plant I dug up from a roadside and has spread a whole bunch since then. But come with a sharp shovel. They have a tap root and do not dig out easily. Might be easier to watch for one that is setting seed.

It spreads slowly, not invasively. Mostly the clump gradually gets bigger. This year for the first time one popped up on the other side of the walkway, but my guess would be the roots just spread under the pavers.

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Sun Aug 09, 2015 6:10 pm

The bumble bees are all over my orange poppies. And they love the dandelions in my no-chemical "lawn", which makes me want to keep it that way. There are some other types of bees as well. Mason bees perhaps.

"In the spring, at the end of the day, you should smell like dirt."Margaret Atwood

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Sun Aug 09, 2015 8:50 pm

Is this question only for honeybees?! I have bumblebees and small native bees, and a few honeybees. Neighbor across the street has a hive. I see a few honeybees, some hanging around wet dirt getting a drink, and around some flowers.

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Sun Aug 09, 2015 9:39 pm

Susan, bees don't want to drink water close to home (don't ask me why). We have butterfly watering stations--shallow bowls filled with gravel--and we occasionally see bees there, about 1/2 acre from their hives. We had ice left over from a get-together, and I set it out in a circle around a couple of fruit trees about an acre from the hives, and as soon as the ice started to melt the bees were all over it, getting drinks.We have mason bees also, and big, slow, adorable cedar bees that have no stinger and just bumble around the garden doing whatever cedar bees do.Keep an eye out for your neighbor's honeybees--they forage for three miles, so you are probably one stop on their daily path to the good stuff!

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Mon Aug 10, 2015 2:51 am

Basil, sunflowers, alyssum, dragon fruit, and fennel for the honey bees. lavender and verbena for the carpenter bees. If you water early in the morning and the foliage is wet when the bees come it is an easy way for them and the butterflies to lap up some water too. The bees are not that active now, they don't like to go out in the rain or extreme heat. On cloudy days, I don't see as many coming out. The bees have been busy fanning the hive though trying to keep it cool. I think right now they would like to be under a nice big shade tree.

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Tue Aug 11, 2015 3:33 pm

I am no expert on bees, but certainly happy to see the varieties including bumblebees, native bees and of course the honeybees. The honeybees getting our attention, a good thing. The bumblebees and native bees (many species of both) are also having numbers issues.

A few blooms that catch attention -agastache Anise Hyssop (other varieties should be great also) has bumblebees and native bees, cucumber leaf sunflower (many smaller blooms) has the small bees, monarda, salvias, Mexican sage, Russian sage, and others, chive blooms, both regular and garlic, coneflowers and so many more.

For me, if one sees a variety of bees in the yard, doing something right for the environment.

Re: what are honeybees liking best in your garden right now?

Tue Aug 11, 2015 3:49 pm

When the mango, citrus, macadamia nut, and avocado trees are in bloom the bees are all over them. Right now some citrus may be in bloom but the others are finishing their season and won't bloom again unti next year.